


Baggage

by bnschucci08



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Awkward Flirting, Eventual Fluff, Eventual Smut, F/M, Flirting, Modern Era, Old Friends, Slow Burn, Strangers to Lovers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-17
Updated: 2016-09-02
Packaged: 2018-04-09 18:31:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,514
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4359731
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bnschucci08/pseuds/bnschucci08
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Her world changed in the blink of an eye. One moment she was living on the last of her student loan savings and the next she was the owner of her aunt's coffee and book store. If that wasn't enough to turn her life upside down, she finds her self living with a complete stranger, a handsome, bald stranger.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Arrival

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first attempt at a multi-chapter fic. Feedback and thoughts are always appreciated!! Thank you for reading!

Ellana woke to an arm wrapping around her waist. She breathed a sigh of contentment and snuggled herself deeper into the arms holding her. She raised her left hand in front of her face and stared at the simple silver band, a smile spreading across her face as she thought about how she wound up here.

           

Chapter One

Arrival

Ellana pulled her car into the small drive of a white, two story house. The trip from the booming metropolis of Denerim to the sleepy little town of Haven had been excruciatingly long. She originally planned on renting a hotel room in Ostagar but the thought of missing the lunch hour traffic of Redcliff was too alluring.

The hours alone on the dark, almost empty road had given her the opportunity to think about what lay in store at the end of drive. Life had certainly take a turn for the unexpected.  A month ago she was living off what remained of her student loans, about to lose her shoebox of an apartment and trying her best to find a graphic design job. Now she had the opportunity to run a business of her own along with a home that was paid for.

Ellana noticed the dark thunder clouds rolling in as she put her car in park. She shook her head as she got out of the car, heading for the trunk and her suitcase. If she tried hard enough, she could almost hear the last conversation she shared with her aunt.

            “Deshanna, what part of, ‘no, I don’t want it,’ don’t you get? I love your home and your book store, but I don’t know the first thing about running a business or taking care of a house! I mean, come on! I call my landlord to change the light bulb in my kitchen!”

            “Ellana, my darling, I believe in you. I know what you are capable of even if you don’t.”

            Ellana huffed, hugged her aunt and drove away. The conversation had been pointless. She remembered being so confused as to why her aunt even brought up the topic. It’s not like Deshanna was even that old; there would be plenty of time do figure these things out.

            The tears began to fall from Ellana’s eyes as she slammed the trunk closed.

            “Pull yourself together Ellana, you can do this.” She laughed at herself for actually saying it out loud, and took some reassurance in that.  

            Ellana took a moment to center herself. It was so easy to slip back into memories of her childhood while she stood in the gravel of the driveway. This house was where she spent her childhood. This was also the house she spent the later part of her teenage angst.

 She had lived here the first time until she was nine and then her father received a promotion that came with a shiny new job transfer to the Free Marches, Kirkwall to be exact.  The house had been in her father’s family for ages so it only made sense to let his sister, Deshanna, have it.

Deshanna had made the house her own, opening a second hand book store and coffee shop on the first floor. It brought some excitement to the backwards town and her aunt had loved interacting with community on a daily basis. The shop had also been a gift from the Creators when she had been dropped in her aunt’s lap at the tender age of fourteen.

            The sky had suddenly began to darken and a loud crack of thunder indicated that the storm was getting ready to rear its head. She picked up her pace and made it to the covered porch as the rain began to fall. Sitting her bags down she began rifling through her purse in a haphazard attempt to find her house keys, berating herself internally for not putting them on her keyring. The light next to the door came on as she pulled the keys out of her purse. Startled she turned around to find someone coming through the front door and reaching for her suitcase. 

            The someone turned out be a gentleman that was bald of head, smug of face, and dressed like he wanted to be the trendiest person at the pajama party.  He looked older than Ellana’s twenty seven, but that didn’t prevent her from finding his angled cheekbones and stormy eyes… inviting.

            “Greetings, I am assuming you must be Ellana. I am Solas.”

            Ellana was, for once, at a complete loss for words, she had no idea who this person was, what they were doing in her house, and why they were helping her with her luggage.

            “I am going to guess that the expression of complete surprise and confusion is because you had no idea that there was some one here?”

            Ellana nodded her head.

            “Ah, I see. Well… Yes…” and with a sigh “spirits.”

            They each stood there for a moment, just looking at each other. It seemed that neither of them knew what to do at that precise moment. The rain began to pick up intensity and the wind was blowing moisture onto the porch. If they lingered out there much longer they would both become soaked to the bone.

            Throwing caution to the wind Ellana sucked in a deep breath and picked up her other suitcase.

            “I say we move this conversation inside. I’ve had one hell of a long day and just want to stretch my legs and have cup of coffee. Why don’t we figure this out while I start a pot? I have a feeling that we are both going to need it.

            A small grin appeared on Solas’s face and he nodded.

            “After you my lady.”


	2. Conversations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am sorry that this took so long to post, real life and nerves (all the nerves) got in the way.

Chapter Two

Conversations

The moment Ellana walked into the shop she felt at home. The welcoming smell of old books and coffee permeated the air while memories of Deshanna came swimming to the forefront of her mind.

            “Are you sure you want to do this? I mean, don’t you think it’s creepy having people in the house just wondering around? I mean what if they wander upstairs while I’m in the bathroom or something?”

            “I’ll make sure that your privacy isn’t violated, my darling niece. I promise that the shop will not spill over into our living space.”

            Deshanna had kept her word by enclosing the stairs and installing a locking door to keep the riff raff out.

            “Just place the suitcases next to the stair door. I’ll move them upstairs later, but before I do that we need to talk about just exactly who you are, why you are in my home, and how you take your coffee.”

            Solas smirked, set the luggage where he was instructed and followed Ellana into the café portion of the little shop. Ellana couldn’t help but notice how perfectly straight his back was. He conducted himself with an air of grace that she would never be able to pull off.

            “I take my coffee with a splash of whole cream.” He informed her as he took a seat at the counter. “As I stated earlier, my name is Solas and what I am doing here is helping you Ms. Lavellan.’

            Ellana gathered the coffee and a french press that her aunt had kept around for personal use then set to work making coffee for the two of them.

            “Ellana, Ms. Lavellan makes me feel old. Help me how exactly? You have already brought my luggage in, what else do I need?

            “Help with the business. I apologize for not being more clear.”

            Ellana cocked her to the right and raised her left eyebrow, a clear sign that she wished him to continue. Now that the coffee was set to steep she leaned forward on the counter in front of this very odd gentleman.

            Solas shook his head and sighed. It was clear that this was not a conversation that he had planned on having.

            “This should have been explained to you by Deshanna’s attorney when the estate was being transferred.”

            “Oh, trust me; first thing tomorrow I’m calling Mr. Tethras and finding out what happened, but since it’s late I’m sure you can just fill me in until then.”

            “I suppose that would be the only appropriate course of action. I started working for Deshanna about two years ago as just part time employment.”

            Ellana straightened up and went to retrieve two cups and some cream.

            “I have been here several times over the last two years and I have never seen you.”

            “It wasn’t until your aunt’s health began to deteriorate that I began working here full time. That was also when Deshanna asked me to move in. She did not like being alone after her treatments. She constantly worried that something would happen to her and it would be days before anyone was alerted.”

            The cream container hit the ground with a sudden thud, spilling creamy, white liquid all over the floor. Ellana reached for a roll of paper towels and cursed under her breath. Solas was up in a flash and around the counter to help before she could even pick up the carton.

            “You live here? Like sleep, shower, eat, the whole nine yards? Here? In this house?” The tone in her voice was shaky with surprise.

            They were both reaching for the rogue milk carton. Solas’s hand arrived a half an instance before Ellana’s and as a result her palm was firmly covering his. The sensation of his skin against hers sent electricity through her veins. Startled, her eyes dart up, meeting his. They were soft-colored; dark and barely blue like the sky before a storm. They caught her off-guard, as much as the touch of her hand on his.

            “Sorry,” she muttered as she hurriedly started to wipe up the cream from the floor.

            “The fault is mine; I should have waited until your hands were free before springing the news that type of news on you.”

            All Ellana could do was chuckle at his misunderstanding and they both worked in tandem to clean up the accident.

            “Were you and my aunt…” Ellana deliberately looked at the trashcan, “… together?”

            She didn’t think it would have been possible for Solas to stand any straighter than he had been, but right before her eyes he straightened himself and turned a bright shade of red.

            “Ellana, I cared very deeply for Deshanna. She gave me chance when no one else would. She provided a roof over my head and a means to support to myself. We grew very close over the years that we worked together. The loss of her from my life has been devastating… however, we were not involved romantically.”

            It was his turn to look away and Ellana felt a surprising wave of relief wash over her. That feeling made her pause momentarily. The thought of this stranger in relationship with her aunt had upset her in an odd way. Knowing that they had never been involved was comforting and that alone in itself was even more confusing.

            Ellana needed to change the subject, both in her mind and with her new roommate. That thought hit her like a so much spilled cream. She was going to be living with this complete stranger. She didn’t know anything about him other than that he claimed he knew and worked with Deshanna.

            Panic began to sink in.

 Turning to look at him again she smiled nervously, “You said you were here to help me?”


	3. Phone Calls and Conversations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 3! Just in time for Christmas! I have to thank my husband for proof reading and helping with Varric dialog! Thank you guys for being super patient with me! I hope to have Chapter 4 out before February.

Chapter 3

    Phone Calls and Conversations

 

            “Yes, I _did_ indeed say that I was here to assist you. What do you need help with?”

            “I was wondering if you happened to have Mr. Tethras’ number handy? Why put off until tomorrow what I can do today.”

            Ellana tried to smile to cover the fact that she had just become super nervous, but she was sure he could see how forced it was. The shock of a strange (albeit polite) man in her house had finally worn off and small concerns began to seep in. For example, he might attempt to stab her in the shower, or watch her sleep. Paranoid, perhaps, but still reasonable. She also considered that maybe it was time to lay off the horror novels before bed.

            “Ah, yes. I can see why you would like to do some further investigation into recent events before settling down for the night.” A small smirk crossed his otherwise stoic face.

Ellana felt warmth spread across her cheeks as she broke eye contact and began looking around for her purse. “Um, yeah, thanks. I’ll just find my phone while you grab that number.”

There wasn’t so much any ‘finding’ involved; her phone was exactly where she left it, in her purse, atop her suitcase. She strode to the door leading upstairs and retrieved the tiny square supercomputer from within what was essentially a designer messenger bag and noticed the blinking alert for three new text messages.

_Dorian 1:34pm_

Please do let me know when you arrive at your destination.

I would notice if something happened to you.

 

_Dorian 2:44pm_

I hate to sound like an overprotective parent but I am

 afraid you leave me no choice. Let me know you are still alive

or I am calling the Haven PD and reporting you missing!

 

_Dorian 2:45pm_

Presuming you aren’t dead, you left your white jacket at my house and it looks amazing on me. You’re leaving it to me in your will.

 

Ellana giggled and quickly glanced at the time.  The last message was received about ten minutes ago. She probably wasn’t on the missing persons list just yet, but to be safe she sent him a quick reply.

_Ellana 2:55pm_

I am fine, safe at the shop. I will call you later.

 

A response came almost immediately.

 

_Dorian 2:55pm_

Good. Still keeping the jacket.

 

“Here you are; office number for Mister Varric Tethras.”

 

Dorian’s sense of humor had distracted her for a moment, momentarily causing her to forget she wasn’t alone and she almost dropped the phone at the sound of Solas’ voice.

 

“I did not mean to startle you,” he chuckled as he handed her the business card, “I shall move your bags to your room while you make your call.”

 

“You don’t have to do that!  I’m perfectly capable of carrying my own luggage.”

 

“I have no doubt, but it’s the least I can do for you. My presence here was completely unexpected, and you have been quite gracious not calling the police on the complete stranger who opened your door. Please, allow me to do you this kindness.”

 

Ellana smiled and shook her head slightly, “Well, when you phrase it like that, how can I say no?”

 

Solas opened the door leading upstairs, grabbed a suitcase in each hand, and began his climb to the second story. She waited until she heard his feet on the floor before moving her call to the front porch. The heavy storm clouds from earlier had grown darker and more pendulous. This was going to be one hell of a downpour.

 

“Creators, please don’t let the power go out,” she muttered under her breath, waiting for a response on the other end of the line, “The last thing I need is to be stuck in a house with no lights and a man who may or may not be a psycho killer...”

 

“Tethras and Tethras, Attorneys at Law. This is Bianca speaking. How can I assist you today?”

 

“Yes, hello Bianca. My name is Ellana Lavellan. Varric Tethras was the attorney for my Aunt Deshanna Lavellan’s estate. It’s of the utmost importance that I speak with him as soon as possible. I have a… sudden and unexpected matter.”

 

“Just one moment while I see if he’s available.”

 

Frustratingly pleasant hold music began to play and Ellana’s nerves began to twist her stomach. Thoughts of what she should do if Varric had never heard of Solas began running through her mind. There was an extra set of keys in her car and she was pretty sure she hadn’t locked the door; she could just run, call the police, and hide out inside until they came to take him away. Images of him in handcuffs being pushed into the back of a cop car flooded her mind. Would he go quietly? _Would there be a shoot-out?_ All other thoughts were pushed aside when a warm and hearty voice began speaking on the other line.

 

            “Ellana! How the hell are ya, kid? Everything alright with house? I _did_ remember to include the keys when I mailed you everything, right?”

 

“Hello, Mr. Tethras.”

 

“Please! Call me Varric. Mr. Tethras is a dick, whether you’re talking about my father or my brother… besides, you’re Deshanna’s niece! That makes you… practically family!”

 

“Alright Varric,” his demeanor was too warm not to calm her a bit. Those terrified thoughts hadn’t run away, but they seemed less… big and bad. “I received the keys and everything else you sent me just fine, thank you. There’s just one… unexpected problem.”

 

“Was everything okay when you got there? Chuckles was supposed to close everything down and just hang tight, but he never did take orders from anyone but Deshana--”

 

“… ‘Chuckles’?”

 

“Chuckles! _Solas_. Y’know, because he has such a great sense of humor?” The sarcasm was more than obvious, but Varric seemed committed to the idea that the joke had gone over Ellana’s head somehow. “Ah, nevermind. There’s a reason I’m a lawyer and not a writer…”

 

Ellana breathed a sigh of relief. “Oh, praise the Creators! Solas is _supposed_ to be here, _and_ you know who he is.”

 

Varric laughed. “Of course I know Chuckles! He’d been helping your aunt out for _years_ now! She talked about him like he was a gift from-- … well, whatever deities she was fond of. Apparently he just showed up one day, lookin’ for work. I’m surprised she never mentioned him herself!”

 

“This is the first I’ve heard of him,” she shook her head in shared bewilderment. “I showed up today and this bald elf opens my door. I have no clue who he is, where he came from, how he knew my aunt. He said _you_ were supposed to tell me about him.”

 

There was a long moment of silence before Varric exhaled deeply.

 

“Sorry about that, kid. I honestly figured she’d told you about him; he’d been working there for years! I figured you would have meet him by now…” another sigh, “If you give me a minute I’m sure I can figure out a way to blame Bartrand for this…” There was the sound of papers being moved around as Varric muttered to himself. “Listen, here’s everything I know. Solas came to Haven a few years back looking for a steady job and somewhere to hang his weird hat. Deshanna said he’d found himself in the wrong place at the wrong time and just needed someone to take a chance one him. So she did! You knew your aunt; she was always good at reading people, so I never questioned it. For as long as I’ve known him, Solas was a good guy and your aunt even trusted him enough to let him take care of her in her final days. As proud a woman as she was, that speaks _volumes_.”

           

This time the exhale came from Ellana’s end; a sigh of relief. “Thank you, Varric. I just needed to know that he was who he said he was. I didn’t want to wind up with him trying to… stab me while I shower.”

           

“You watch to many horror movies!” Another laugh, with no small amount of relief that his apology seemed sufficient. “Listen, while I ‘ve got you on the horn, I’m gonna be mailing out the check from your aunt’s insurance policy. All her debts have been settled and it _should_ get you through the next few months until you can get on your feet with the shop. Solas knows his way around the place, and he can at least show you the ropes before you decide what to do with him. You being as young as you are, I’m sure you won’t need his help for long.”

 

            “Will do. Thank you _so_ much for all you’ve done.”

 

            “Not a problem! Call me if you need anything.”

 

            “I will. Have a good night.”

 

            The phone beeped as the call ended. Big drops of rain had started falling, and the wind was starting to blow it onto the porch. Ellana returned inside and closed the door to find ‘Chuckles’ waiting patiently on the other side.

 

            “Did Mr. Tethras provide you with the clarity that you were seeking? Or shall I be expecting the local constabulary to be arriving momentarily?”

 

            There was a smile on Solas’s face as he spoke but Ellana could tell that he was just a touch nervous. No, not nervous; prepared. Like he had a plan should that turn of events come about, but it was one he _really_ didn’t want to have to enact. Ellana could only imagine what he must going through; the only person to give him a chance in recent memory had just died, and _he_ had been the one to help her through it as she stubbornly insisted her family not be troubled by such a “trivial” matter. He then had to wait in limbo to see if he got to remain in his home and keep his job at the whims of a woman who _just would not stop pretending to smile at things_.

 

            “Everything’s straightened out, Chuckles. Varric spoke quiet highly of you, and assured me that you wouldn’t be killing me in my sleep.” Solas sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose at the sound of his horrible nickname, but quickly recovered by the time Ellana had finished speaking.

 

            “I’m very glad to hear it. As for your bags, they are on your bed. Would you like something to eat? I’m prepared to cook something for the both of us, if that would be appropriate.”

 

            She reached for her purse and pulled out her wallet, handing him a few bills. “Why don’t you order us something from Haven’s Pizzeria? My treat. It’s been a stressful day for the both of us, and I don’t want either of us to have to cook. I’m not picky, so order what you want.”

 

            He nodded and accepted the cash with a gracious smile.

 

            “I am going to unpack and make a few calls. Just come get me when the pizza’s here. If that’s not enough with tip, just let me know.”

 

            “I certainly shall. If anything is out of place or you need help with anything in the house, please don’t hesitate to call for me.”

 

            With that Solas retreated to the café to use the phone and Ellana ventured upstairs to unpack… and share an extensive call with Dorian.

 

          

 


	4. Pizza and Memories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again to my husband for being my beta.

Chapter 4

Pizza and Memories

           

Ellana walked up the stairs and into the family section of the house. The smell of the living room hit her like sudden thunderstorm. Her aunt loved the scent of the outdoors after a rainfall, and would often sit on the porch and lament that the world didn’t smell like that all the time. On a trip to visit her in Denerim, she had stumbled across a candle store that sold exotic and strange-scented candles. When she stumbled across one that smelled like Haven after a rainstorm she cleaned them out and became their new favorite mail-order customer. The memory brought up both incredibly happy and horribly sad feelings in Ellana within only seconds of each other. 

Wiping away a stray tear she walked down the hall to her bedroom, pausing at the first door on her right; Deshanna’s room. She reached for the handle, but after a moment of hesitation, let it fall. 

“Creators, I am _not_ ready for that,” she sighed to no one but herself. 

Ellana continued down to the last door on the left, opened it, and let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding. Her room was exactly the way she left it, complete with her old Boys 2 Wardens posters on the wall. Her first though upon entering was that she needed to remove those before Solas saw them. Her second thought was wondering why that first thought happened... 

She put her bag on the floor and flung her purse on the bed. She knew she had about 45 minutes before Solas would be coming up stairs with the pizza so if she wanted to call Dorian she would need to do it now. Ellana pulled out her phone and hit his speed dial. 

"Darling, how wonderful of you to call," purred Dorian from the speaker on her phone, "I  _do_  hope you're not simply inquiring about the jacket, because I was being serious when I said I was keeping it." 

"Hello to you as well, Dorian. Why, yes! I  _did_  have a good trip, and  _no_  I don't care about the jacket. Consider it a going away present." 

"I will do just that." There was a casual gratitude to his tone that reminded her he had already made up his mind, but was pleased he wouldn't have to fight for it. "So how is everything? Settling in nicely I presume? Bags unpacked? Tears for your aunt shed? Any handsome customers?" 

Ellana sighed, "I haven't met any customers yet, handsome or otherwise, but I did meet... … someone." 

There was a sudden gasp from the other line. "Ellana Lavellan, you know you should have opened with  _that!_  Tell me! Leave out nothing!  _Embellish the dirty parts._ " 

She spent the next ten minutes recounting the events of the day.

“So you are stuck with a handsome elf in your house and don’t know what to do? Ellana! I am surprised at you! Turn on your charm, flirt with him, enjoy yourself a little. I am just not sure what you want me to do about it all the way over here!”

“Really? Flirt with him? You can’t be serious. I don’t expect YOU to do anything, I just thought you might have advice on how to handle it.”

 “Well sweetie, if you don’t even know how to handle it then I…”

“DORIAN!”

“Kidding! Kidding! Just get to know him, Ellana. If your aunt trusted him so much, you should at least _try_ to do the same. Think of him as... your upperclassman roommate from your first year at university. He's your guide and your lifeline to keeping the business afloat until you learn the ropes for yourself. And, just remember; I am only a phone call and a day’s drive away. “

Ellana ended the call with Dorian and moments later there was light tapping on her door. She walked over and opened it to find Solas standing there with a pizza and a few cans of soda.

“I do apologize if I am disturbing you, however, our dinner has been delivered. I thought we could eat in the living room. It is a little less formal and would likely provide a more comfortable place for us to talk. I feel that if we are going to be spending so much time together we should at least go over the basics.”

Ellana smiled and nodded.

“Lead the way.”

Solas placed the pizza and soda on the coffee table and took a seat on the  left side of the couch. Ellana sat on the opposite side and opened the pizza box. The amazing scent of cheese, tomato sauce and pepperoni filled her nostrils. She had missed this restaurant. She had tried hundreds of different places when she was in school and nothing at even come close their amazing flavor combination.

"I decided to just be safe and order pepperoni."

"Pepperoni is always a good choice. I love ordering from this place. I will probably be eating it nonstop for the next couple weeks. ... and by weeks I mean months.”

Solas just smiled and reached for a slice. They sat in awkward silence for several moments until Solas broke the ice by clearing his throat.

               “Your aunt told me that you have aspirations of becoming an artist of sorts, and that is what you spent the last several years pursuing. She did hope that you would continue to work on it in your spare time once you arrived.”

               A wistful smile appeared on face and she nodded.

               “I do plan on keeping up with it. I still have everything I need, it’s just all in my friend’s storage unit along with all the bigger furniture from my apartment.” She held up a finger while pausing to drink her soda. “As soon as I get the check I am going to wire him the money to rent a small truck and bring it me.”

               Solas nodded and they continued to eat in silence. Ellana then got a strange look on her face. She finished her slice of pizza and then turned to look directly at Solas.

               “I have been playing this over and over in my head, how to say this without being rude and nosy, but honestly I can’t figure out how so I'm just going to ask and get it out of the way.  Ah... to get right now down to it, where did you come from? How did you end up here? What are your plans?”

"Well," Solas began...

               He had lost it all. Everything he had ever worked for, everything his family had left him. He had nothing but a few dollars and the clothes he had managed to grab before his friend’s landlord had physically pushed him out of what used to be their apartment.

               When he had lost his family, it was a blow he thought he would never get over. He spent months wallowing in his own grief until he finally decided he had to do something with his life. He decided he wanted to help people, to help get people back on their feet so he started volunteering with a group that tried to get drug addicts off the streets and into programs that would help him get clean and stay clean.

               That’s when he met her, the person that would fill the void that his family had left. There was nothing romantic about their relationship; it was purely platonic, but they connected on a very deep level. She had helped keep him from drowning in his own despair but in the end he had lost her to the same culture they had both worked so hard to get people out of.

               The first time he found out she was using, he moved in temporarily to help get her clean. The second time he had sold his house to help to pay for a world renowned treatment facility. The third time he found out she was using was when he found her dead on the couch.

               He had not thought about the fact his name had never been on the lease or the fact that the car was in her name. Her extended family that she hadn’t seen in years swooped in and with the help of her landlord forced him out of his home.

               He ended up hitching a ride to Haven. The driver had been kind and had dropped him off unscathed on the outside of town. He had stumbled into Deshanna’s shop right before a storm came. Not wanting to be rude he pulled the remaining change from his pocket and ordered a small, black, decaf coffee.

               Deshanna had slid a large coffee and a piece of pie in front of him and quietly told him it was on the house. Over the next two hours she had managed to get the whole sordid story out him and by the time he had finished his second piece of pie she had offered him a job. She originally had worked out a deal with a local motel where she paid for his room and just took it out of his check, but in the end she just gave him her spare room for a fraction of the price she was paying for the motel.

               It worked out very well for the both them; neither were alone anymore, Deshanna had more help around the shop and Solas felt useful for the first time in a long time. Before long she began to fill the hole his friend had left. Then the cancer came and for the third time he was left alone and unsure of his future.

               “... and that is how I came to be in your home. As for my plans. I would very much like to continue with the store. I feel that I will be invaluable to you over the next few weeks. If you would be amenable to me staying here, then I would very much like to remain living here. It has become my home over the last few years. If not, I completely understand, and all I would ask is that you allow me a few weeks to find a place of my own.”

               The silence was thick enough to cut. Ellana just looked at him. She spent the next five minutes staring at him with a blank expression on her face. Deshanna had called it her 'poker face', though card games were hardly her fote. It's what she did when she was _very_ deep in thought to avoid the inevitable queries of 'what're you thinking about?'

               “Okay,” she finally exhaled, “you can stay. Both as an employee and as my housemate. If the living situation ends up not working for some reason, you will be given plenty of time to find a place. You will also have a job here as long as you want one, regardless of the living situation.”

               His entire body seemed to un-tense in a way that Ellana hadn’t concerned wasn’t his natural posture.

               “Thank you. That’s… quite a weight lifted off my shoulders.”

She looked down and noticed the pizza was gone. She got up and threw the box in the trash.

               “I am going to grab the rest of my stuff and unpack. Tomorrow we will go over the basics of running the business. I want to open it up again by the end of the week if possible.”

               “As you wish. If you need my help with anything, let me know. If not, then I will meet you downstairs around ten A.M.”

               Ellana nodded and walked over to the door leading downstairs. Solas stood up and headed toward his room. They looked at each one last time before opening their respective doors. Solas was smiling.


	5. Back in the Swing of Things

Chapter 5  
Back in the Swing of Things  
The next few days flew by in daze of coffee and numbers. The first thing Ellana did was make sure she remembered how to make the various types of coffee and confections that Deshanna had served. She was glad when she was able to remember almost everything, and with Solas help she quickly caught on to the few items she'd never made before.

The bookkeeping aspect was the only thing she had been truly dreading. She had never been terribly interested in numbers. While she had been fine with balancing her own checkbook all her life, the thoughts of monitoring shipments, paying countless bills, doing payroll, taking inventory, and --Creators forbid-- paying _taxes_ , were absolutely terrifying.

Solas had been doing his best taking her on a crash course of running the business, but even by the third night she just couldn’t seem to wrap her mind around how Deshanna kept everything organized. Her used book intake process in particular had Ellana's frustration levels climbing ever higher. Earlier in the day she had done inventory and had put together an order for tomorrow. Solas was going over it to make sure she hadn’t missed something (a task that Ellana had insisted on, despite his professed confidence in her) when he heard something hard crash into the wall a few feet from his head. He looked up to see Ellana sobbing into her hands.

"I can’t do this. I just _can’t!_ I don’t understand, and it's frustrating me to the end of my _fucking_ wits!” she half-screamed, pouring out more of her tightly-wound emotions into her voice. Ellana looked up to see Solas watching the tears streaming down her face, and she began to laugh. “I must look like a complete idiot. You're over there making sure I haven’t fucked this all up, then all of a sudden a book flies at your head and you see me crying like a toddler.” She was still crying as she tried to make a joke about her sudden outburst, although it was a bit more restrained now.

“You do not look like an idiot. You look like someone who has reached the end of their rope,” Solas replied with a small smile. “Let us take a break. I believe we have both earned a reprieve from the stress.”

He walked over to where she was sitting and offered his hand to help her from her seat. She accepted it, and when their fingers touched, she felt the same electricity as when she had touched him the first night. Her face flushed with heat, and she argued with herself that it was just her raw emotional state getting the better of her, at least long enough to be helped to her feet. Once she was standing, she looked at the elf in front of her. He was handsome, and his greyish eyes which normally appeared so sad currently held a slight mischievous spark to them. Her face turned red when she realized that they were still touching, and this she had no decent excuse for. After what seemed like both a welcome eternity and a dreadful instant, Solas released her hand.

“Let us get out of this confining office. I believe the evening air will do us both some good."

She smiled at him and nodded. “Yes that sounds like a wonderful idea.”

“Very well. You go on ahead, I shall join you momentarily with something sweet.” He smiled and walked into the kitchen as she walked toward the front door.

Solas was right; the crisp autumn breeze seemed to break her frustrations more than any weaponized literature and tearful growling could have. With a sudden sense of clarity, Ellana headed straight toward the porch swing that had been a place of solace for as long as she could remember. Sitting down, she began to gently rock back forth while her thoughts drifted to times long forgotten, books long since read, and Aunts dearly missed. It was only when she felt the careful weight of another person on the swing that she returned to the present. Solas smiled and handing her a cup with steam rising from it. Ellana accepted it and drank in the saccharine warmth. It was as if he'd plucked the exact sort of drink Deshanna would make her when she was younger and upset straight from her daydreams.

“I do hope it is to your standards. Deshanna only made it for me once.”

A smooth sip of the warm beverage instantly calmed her down. A delicious blend of coffee, chocolate, and raspberries met with the nostalgic thoughts dancing through her head and spread to her heart. It was so exact down to every sensation that she had to remind herself it wasn't Deshanna who had brewed it. Her eyes widened a bit with the shock, and she turned in her seat to face Solas with full attention.

“She spoke of you often," he mused. "One night after her diagnosis she made it in an attempt to bring herself similar comfort. She explained it was something she had made for you when you needed a smile.”

“It’s perfect. Thank you.”

They sat on the swing in silence, enjoying the weather as numbers and paperwork faded to distant memory. Once again, tears slowly streamed down Ellana's face as she sipped her coffee. It was easy to see that Solas was somehow uncomfortable with the development, but he kept quiet. Ellana wiped her face and tried her best to stem the flow.

“I am so sorry that I'm such a weeping mess. It's just a combination of the stress of losing her, and trying not to disappoint her memory, and… _numbers_ … all rolled up at once. She was all I had left. I don’t want to destroy her legacy because I wasn’t smart enough to place an order for books properly.”

“She would not have left it to your if she did not feel you could handle the intricacies of this business. She loved you, and she trusted you.”

Autumn interrupted them once more, crunching leaves and the wind through the trees singing softly as the chains of the porch swing kept the time. Ellana felt distant from herself in that way one often does after a good cry. She also felt like sharing the pieces she was looking at, and more or less had a captive audience.

“You know, I was only supposed to be visiting her for two weeks. My father had just died and my mother was overwhelmed by grief. She arranged a summer holiday to Haven for me. She said it would help get my mind off the loss of my dad.”

Solas listened attentively, nursing his own beverage. His eyes were tranquil as they watched her begin her tale with no judgment or expectation.

“We pulled up and my mother helped carry my bags to the porch. She didn’t come inside, and wouldn’t make eye contact with Deshanna. She was _supposed_ to be getting us an apartment in Highever. She had family there that could get her a job. I had assumed she just didn’t want me underfoot while she sorted everything out…”

Solas nodded, as that was a reasonable thing to assume.

“She hugged me, told me she loved me, and then drove off after promises of calling me later that night when she had a hotel room. The call never came. We aren’t exactly sure what happened. She hadn’t left a number where she could be reached, and she never actually said the names of her supposed family in Highever...”

She began to softly cry once more, prompting Solas to set his drink down on the porch. He assumed a more open position; reclined, but not relaxed, and closer to Ellana. She found his dedicated attention reassuring, even through the tears, and continued.

“We filed a missing person’s report but nothing came of it. There's a part of me that hopes she is out there somewhere, happy and healthy, living her life. … but there's also a part of me that hopes she isn’t. I wasn’t some burden for her throw into Deshanna’s lap!”

The tears turned to sobs, and Solas wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulling her gently into his embrace. He was so calm, and so soothingly warm. It was easy for her to let him hold her until the crying finally abated. She turned her face up to him, and attempted a small smile.

“You must think I am the biggest mess right now.”

"No," Solas shook his head, “I think you are incredibly strong. It takes an often underappreciated degree of courage to brave what you have been through and still continue on, _especially_ with the kind of dedication you have shown.”

“You really think so?” She tilted her head up and looked deeply into his eyes.

He reached his other hand to face and wiped away a tear from her face with his thumb. “I really do.”

Ellana was suddenly very aware that his face was inclining toward her own, and that hers was trying to meet it. Her breath caught in her throat, and her lips trembled a bit as they ventured for his-- when suddenly the noisy crunch of tires on gravel interrupted the intimacy of the moment and several long, grating beeps of celebratory honking punctuated the end of the moment. They both jumped, slightly, almost as though they had been caught doing something they shouldn't, turning to face the interrupting vehicle.

It was a Toyota Prius, gleaming white and shimmering with soft batches of color under the sunset sky. Vivienne the Divine's latest single blared for a moment before being cut off by the killed engine as a tall, olive-skinned man unfolded himself from the vehicle. He whipped off his venetian shades and smirked in a way that made his expertly-curled mustache curl even more. He was wearing tight leather pants with a chunky belt, white wing tips, and a pastel halter top with "SHADE QUEEN" in massive block letters… and, of course, the white jacket.

“Ell _ana~!_ Amatus!" Dorian's smile lifted her spirits just as much as they frustrated her, "I am here to help make your life _so_ much less boring!”


End file.
